Rehoboth Baster, Namibian or Namibian Baster? An analysis of national discourses in Rehoboth, Namibia

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6307238
AutoresKristin Kjæret (University of Oslo), Kristian Stokke (0000-0002-3683-6892, University of Oslo)
Año2003
Volumen9
Número4
Páginas579-600
Fecha de publicación2003-10-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaNations and Nationalism (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1345-5078 • E-ISSN: 1469-8129
EditorialWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/1469-8219.00128
OpenAlexW2004214055
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas7
Referencias citadas15

The point of departure of this article is a conception of nations as discursive constructions of ‘us’/‘here’ in relation to ‘them’/‘there’. The empirical analysis examines three national discourses in Rehoboth, Namibia: (1) a discourse on the ethnic Baster nation; (2) a discourse on the Namibian nation‐state and (3) a discourse on the nation‐state containing a variety of ethnic nations (‘the rainbow nation’). The first discourse is characterised by a primordial belief about Rehoboth Basters, their homeland and their ties to this homeland. This conception is challenged by the discourse on the Namibian nation‐state. Here, it is argued that ‘ethnic nations’ are the creation of colonialism; with Namibia's new independence, it is seen as necessary to tear down previous ‘ethnic nations’ and build up a new, united nation‐state. The rainbow discourse attempts to integrate the other two discourses through ideas about overlapping nations, where the boundaries that separate ‘us’/‘here’ from ‘them’/‘there’ overlap and are inclusive rather than exclusive

Colonialism · Discourse analysis · Ethnic group · Homeland · Independence (probability theory · Linguistics · Political science · Politics · Sociology · State (computer science · Anthropology · Gender Studies · German Colonialism and Identity Studies · Law · Multilingual Education and Policy